Ragdoll Productions

British television production company

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Ragdoll Productions Limited

Logo used since 2000

Formerly| Ragdoll Productions (U.K.) Limited (1985-2000)
Ragdoll Video Limited (1991–2000)[1][2]
Ragdoll Limited (2000-2013)[3]
Type| Private
Industry| Television production
Founded| 26 July 1984; 39 years ago (1984-07-26)
Founder| Anne Wood
Headquarters|

Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire

England

Key people

* Anne Wood

Owner| Anne Wood
Subsidiaries| The Ragdoll Foundation
Website| ragdoll.co.uk
Footnotes / references
[1]

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The evolution of WildBrain

1968| FilmFair is founded
1971| DIC Audiovisuel is founded
1974| CPLG is founded
1976| CINAR and Colossal Pictures are founded
1982| DIC Enterprises is founded
1984| Ragdoll Productions is founded
1987| DIC Audiovisuel closes
1988| Studio B Productions is founded
1992| Epitome Pictures is founded
1993| DIC Enterprises becomes DIC Entertainment
1994| Wild Brain and Red Rover Studios are founded
1995| Platinum Disc Corporation is founded
1996| CINAR buys FilmFair's library
1997| Decode Entertainment is founded
1999| Wild Brain acquires Colossal Pictures' employee base
2002| Nerd Corps Entertainment is founded
2004| Halifax Film Company is founded and CINAR rebrands as Cookie Jar Group
2005| Platinum Disc Corporation rebrands as Echo Bridge Home Entertainment
2006| Decode and Halifax Film merge as DHX Media, DIC acquires CPLG, and Ragdoll Worldwide is formed with BBC Worldwide
2007| DHX Media buys Studio B Productions and Wild Brain becomes Wildbrain Entertainment
2008| Cookie Jar Group absorbs DIC and House of Cool absorbs Red Rover Studios
2010| DHX Media buys Wildbrain Entertainment
2011| Decode Entertainment closes
2012| DHX Media buys Cookie Jar Group
2013| DHX Media buys Ragdoll Worldwide
2014| DHX Media buys Epitome Pictures, Nerd Corps and Echo Bridge Home Entertainment, and Cookie Jar Group is absorbed
2016| The Wildbrain multi-channel network launches and Studio B and Nerd Corps merge as DHX Studios
2017| Wildbrain Entertainment closes and DHX Media buys Peanuts Worldwide and Strawberry Shortcake
2018| Halifax Film becomes Island of Misfits
2019| DHX Media rebrands as WildBrain, Epitome Pictures closes, and the WildBrain MCN becomes WildBrain Spark
2020| CPLG becomes WildBrain CPLG
2023| WildBrain acquires House of Cool

* v
* t
* e

Ragdoll Productions Limited, or simply Ragdoll, is a British television production company founded in 1984 by Anne Wood, who had previously worked for Yorkshire Television and TV-am. It is located in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, and has produced a number of children's programmes, most notably Pob's Programme, Teletubbies, Rosie and Jim, Brum, Boohbah, Tots TV, and In the Night Garden..., most of which are now owned by WildBrain.

## History[edit]

Ragdoll Productions was founded on 26 July 1984 by Anne Wood, who produced shows for the ITV network. The company was incorporated as Ragdoll Productions (U.K.) Limited in April 1985.[4] The company's first show, Pob's Programme, premiered on Channel 4 later that year. The company at first produced puppet-based programmes, and their mascot was originally a female rag doll that was based on one that belonged to Wood's daughter. The company was later commissioned by Central Independent Television to produce Playbox, which demonstrated the ability for the company to produce their own characters. In 1989, The Magic Mirror and BOOM! marked the company's debut in the animation and live-action markets.[5]

In the mid-1990s, Ragdoll expanded operations to the United States, and signed a deal with The Itsy Bitsy Entertainment Company to sell their programmes in the market.

In 2000, Ragdoll dropped their rag doll mascot for a more simplistic logo designed by Lambie-Nairn, which is still used as of 2023, with the company also adopting a new name of Ragdoll Limited by that point. During that year, the company started to move away from puppet-based shows (which started with Teletubbies in 1997), by making animated cartoons. Ragdoll still produced live-action shows, but would use costumes and animatronics instead of puppets.

In October 2001, Ragdoll parted ways with Itsy Bitsy following a failure to reach an agreement with the company's majority owner, the Handleman Group. Ragdoll then started to sell their programmes on their own from then-on, forming Ragdoll USA.[6]

In January 2002, Teletubbies: Everywhere, a spin-off of Teletubbies, was announced to air on CBeebies within its launch window.[7] On 14 June, a new series titled Boohbah was announced and was pre-sold to CITV and GMTV for a 2003 delivery.[8] The show later saw an international roll-out.

At MIPTV 2005, Ragdoll announced a new series titled Blurrfect and that CITV had acquired broadcasting rights for an autumn 2005 delivery.[9] By September 2005, the series was renamed Blips, and soon premiered on 29 September 2005 as part of the CITV's autumn schedule.[10][11] On 13 October, Ragdoll unrevealed two new series that were pre-sold to the BBC: In the Night Garden... and Tronji, for a 2007 delivery.[12] In October 2005, Ragdoll subsidiary The Ragdoll Foundation announced that Five's Milkshake! block had commissioned a series of six short films titled What Makes Me Happy?, which would air daily from 19 December.[13]

In September 2006, Ragdoll formed a joint venture with BBC Worldwide called Ragdoll Worldwide, to sell and license the company's programmes outside of the UK and North America. In the Night Garden... and Tronji would be the first two programmes created as part of the venture, while existing programmes were handled by BBC Worldwide, which managed the international broadcast sales and the UK and international licensing of all Ragdoll properties (including Blips, Boohbah, Brum, Tots TV, Rosie and Jim, and Open a Door), with Ragdoll retaining all British broadcast rights. A new subsidiary, Ragdoll USA Inc., part of the new joint venture, would manage Ragdoll's distribution in North America.[14]

In January 2013, Ragdoll opted to end their agreement with BBC Worldwide and put up Ragdoll Worldwide for sale.[15] On 16 September, Canadian studio DHX Media (now as "WildBrain") purchased the venture from both companies for £17.4 million (or USD$24 million)[16] The deal included the rights to Ragdoll's programming, but excluded the rights to Pob's Programme and Playbox, the latter of which was acquired by ITV Studios. The company also changed to its current name of Ragdoll Productions Limited, with "Productions" added back to the name after 13 years.

In 2015, Ragdoll co-produced the live-action/stop-motion series Twirlywoos with DHX, making it the first and only co-production between the companies.

In 2018, the company co-produced a short film with Disney UK for the Hope Works initiative, titled What Shall We Do With The Angry Monster?.[17]

In 2021, Ragdoll formed a deal with British distribution company Cake Entertainment for them to distribute their new series, B.O.T. and the Beasties, for CBeebies.

## Pre-Ragdoll productions[edit]

The following are some of Ragdoll's productions before the company was founded, accompanied by a brief description and vital statistics:

* Puzzle Party \- first broadcast in 1977. Hosted by Gyles Brandreth and featuring characters Gnigel and Gnu, the show was one of Anne Wood's earliest TV shows for the BBC.
* The Book Tower \- first broadcast in 1979, hosted by Tom Baker and Stephen Moore.
* Ragdolly Anna \- first broadcast in 1982, based on the children's books by Jean Kenward.
* Roland Rat \- first broadcast in 1983.

## Productions[edit]

Ragdoll's programmes produced between 1990 and 2017 (excluding Pob's Programme, BOOM! and Storytime) are currently owned by WildBrain (formerly known as DHX Media).

### Ragdoll Productions[edit]

Title  | Year(s)  | Network  | Notes/Sources

|
|
|

Pob's Programme | 1985–1990 | Channel 4 | Currently distributed by Channel 4 Distribution
Playbox | 1987–1992 | ITV (Central) | Currently owned by ITV Studios
The Magic Mirror | 1989 | ITV | Co-production for The Kellogg Company
Ragdoll's first animated production
BOOM! | 1990–1991 | Channel 4 | Ragdoll's first non-puppet live-action production
Currently distributed by Channel 4 Distribution
Rosie and Jim | 1990-2000 | ITV (Central) |
Brum | 1991, 1994
2001–2002 | BBC One (Children's BBC/CBBC)
CBeebies |
Tots TV | 1993–1998 | ITV (Central) | Co-produced with Carlton Television in later seasons
Rights co-owned with ITV Studios
Open a Door | 1994–2003 | BBC Two (Children's BBC/CBBC)
CBeebies | An international short film series co-produced with other companies.
Storytime | 1995–1997 | BBC Two | Series 5-6 only
Teletubbies | 1997–2001 | BBC Two (Children's BBC/CBBC) | Original series, revivals/reboots are produced by DHX Media.
Badjelly the Witch | 2000 | BBC One | Television special/movie
Co-produced with Norma Farnes Management
Teletubbies Everywhere | 2002 | CBeebies | Short form series
Boohbah | 2003–2006 | ITV (CITV and GMTV) | Co-produced with GMTV
Blips | 2005–2006 | ITV (CITV) |
What Makes Me Happy | 2005 | Five (Milkshake!) | Co-produced with The Ragdoll Foundation
Series of six short films
Twirlywoos | 2015–2017 | CBeebies | Co-produced with DHX Media
What Shall We Do With The Angry Monster? | 2018 | YouTube | Short film
Co-produced for Disney UK
B.O.T. and the Beasties | 2021-present | CBeebies | Short form series
Distributed by Cake Entertainment

### Ragdoll Worldwide[edit]

Title  | Year(s)  | Network  | Notes/Sources

|
|
|

In the Night Garden... | 2007–2009 | CBeebies |
Tronji | 2009–2010 | CBBC |
Dipdap | 2011 | CBeebies | Short form series

The Adventures of Abney & Teal | 2011–2012 | CBeebies |

## The Ragdoll Shop[edit]

The Ragdoll Shop in Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire was a store that consisted of themed play areas based on Ragdoll properties and an area where merchandise was sold. The store first opened in 1992, and traded until 2005, because of expansion limits and failure to find a new larger venue.[18]

The building that formerly housed the shop is now a optometrist's practice named Dr. CP Grey's. The picture of Rosie and Jim waving can still be seen in the black window at the top of the building.

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b "RAGDOLL PRODUCTIONS LIMITED overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". Companies House. 15 October 1991. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
2. ^ "Terms and Conditions". Ragdoll Productions. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
3. ^ "DHX WORLDWIDE HOLDINGS LIMITED overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK".
4. ^ "DHX WORLDWIDE HOLDINGS LIMITED overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK".
5. ^ "1980s – the Early Years".
6. ^ "Ragdoll and Itsy Bitsy part company".
7. ^ "CBBC: Launch dates and new shows".
8. ^ "ITV/GMTV greenlight for Ragdoll".
9. ^ "StackPath". Archived from the original on 23 September 2006.
10. ^ "StackPath". Archived from the original on 23 September 2006.
11. ^ "Blips to splat onto CiTV this autumn".
12. ^ "StackPath". Archived from the original on 23 September 2006.
13. ^ "StackPath". Archived from the original on 23 September 2006.
14. ^ "StackPath". Archived from the original on 20 November 2007.
15. ^ "Ragdoll puts sales joint venture with BBC Worldwide on the market". The Guardian (London). 29 January 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
16. ^ "Teletubbies owner bought by Canadian firm DHX Media". The Guardian (London). 16 September 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
17. ^ "#SoundCelebration Day 2: What Shall We do with the Angry Monster?".
18. ^ "StackPath".

## External links[edit]

* Ragdoll website
* History of Ragdoll

* v
* t
* e

Ragdoll Productions

Founders|

* Anne Wood
* Andrew Davenport

Television series|

* Pob's Programme (1985–1990)
* Playbox (1987–1992)
* Rosie and Jim (1990–2000)
* Brum (1991–2002)
* Tots TV (1993–1998)
* Teletubbies (original series; 1997–2001)
* Boohbah (2003–2006)
* Blips (2004–2009)
* In the Night Garden... (2007–2009)
* Tronji (2009–2010)
* The Adventures of Abney & Teal (2011–2012)
* Dipdap (2011)
* Twirlywoos (2015–2016)
* B.O.T and the Beasties (2021)

Films|

* Badjelly the Witch (2000)
* What Makes Me Happy (2005)

* v
* t
* e

Animation industry in the United Kingdom

Active Animation
Studios/Companies|

* Aardman Animations
* Aniventure
* Apax Partners
* Art You Grew Up With
* Bird Studios
* Blacknorth
* Blue Zoo Animation Studio
* BreakThru Films
* Cake Entertainment
* CHF Entertainment
* Collingwood & Co.
* Framestore
* Fred & Eric
* Gateway Films
* Hasbro Entertainment UK
* Astley Baker Davies
* Icon Film Distribution
* Isle of Man Film
* Illuminated Film Company
* Jellyfish Pictures
* King Rollo Films
* The Line
* Littlenobody
* Locksmith Animation
* LTL Production
* Magic Light Pictures
* Melendez Films
* Nexus Productions
* Passion Pictures
* Ragdoll Productions
* Red Kite Animation
* Smallfilms
* Sony Pictures Television Kids
* Spite Your Face
* Splash Entertainment
* Straandlooper
* Studio AKA
* Studio Liddell
* Synthetic Dimensions
* Warner UK
* Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe
* WildBrain
* Spark

Defunct Animation
Studios/Companies|

* Amblimation
* bolexbrothers
* Bumper Films
* Chapman Entertainment
* Chorion
* Silver Lining Productions
* Clearwater Features
* Contender Entertainment Group
* Cosgrove Hall Films
* Entertainment Rights
* FilmFair
* Fine Arts Films
* Gullane Entertainment
* HiT Entertainment
* Halas and Batchelor
* Hot Animation
* Qurios Entertainment
* Renga Media
* Seville Pictures
* Spy Pictures

Related topics|

* Arthur Melbourne-Cooper
* Jerry the Troublesome Tyke

* v
* t
* e

WildBrain

WildBrain Television|

* Family Channel
* WildBrainTV
* Family Jr.
* Télémagino

WildBrain (UK) Limited|

* WildBrain Worldwide Limited
* WildBrain CPLG
* WildBrain Spark

Other|

* Peanuts Worldwide
* Shortcake IP Holdings LLC
* House of Cool Studios
* WildBrain Studios
* Decode Entertainment

People|

* Micheline Charest
* Ronald A. Weinberg
* Michael Donovan
* Michael Hirsh
* Eric Ellenbogen
* Anne Wood
* Andrew Davenport
* Robin Stevens
* Linda Schuyler
* Stephen Stohn
* Asaph Fipke
* Jean Chalopin
* Andy Heyward
* Bruno Bianchi
* Ivor Wood
* Charles M. Schulz
* Barbi Sargent
* Muriel Fahrion

Related|

* List of WildBrain programs
* Studio B Productions
* Epitome Pictures
* Nerd Corps Entertainment
* Colossal Pictures
* CINAR
* CINAR scandal
* Cookie Jar Group
* Cookie Jar TV
* Cookie Jar Kids Network
* Cookie Jar Toons
* DIC Entertainment
* Wildbrain Entertainment
* FilmFair
* KidsCo

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF

National|

* United States

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